


Christmas Bug

by CrypticCravings (Sekaiinokoi)



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Christmas Fluff, F/M, Fluff, Identity Reveal, ML Secret Santa, Marriage Proposal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-31
Updated: 2019-06-06
Packaged: 2019-09-30 22:37:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,340
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17232491
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sekaiinokoi/pseuds/CrypticCravings
Summary: A holiday tale of love, fluff, and identities for Xanoka/Adventures-in-Mangaland for the 2018 ML Secret Santa exchange.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Xanoka](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Xanoka/gifts).



> To my giftee, I hope you enjoy this as much as I enjoyed writing it for you! The next part will be out tomorrow.

Paris was buzzing with a flurry of holiday activity. Children were cheerful, adults were merry, and everyone was working hard to spread Christmas joy; including two of Paris’s greatest heroes. 

Ladybug and Cat Noir worked hard alongside many civilians to set up the annual holiday festival in the park. It was tradition that started about six or so years ago, one of Andre Bourgeois’s last social projects for the city of Paris before retiring. The festival stimulated local businesses, and it gave an opportunity for the citizens to feel closer to one another and to Ladybug and Cat Noir, as the two heroes jointly played the role of “Santa Claus” and passed out presents to the underprivileged children of the city. Hawkmoth may be long silent, but Ladybug and Cat Noir remained a beacon of hope for Parisians. In lieu of fighting bad guys, regular public appearances and charity work had become part of their heroic routine. Along with, of course, the occasional bout of vigilante justice. 

Ladybug took a step back from her partner, her chin grasped between her thumb and her forefinger as she assessed the Santa jacket hanging off of her partner’s shoulders. “Are you sure you gave me the proper measurements, Cat?”

Cat Noir spun around, looking over the jacket and not seeing what was causing her so much concern. “Positive. Why?”

Ladybug shook her head. “Something seems off. Have you bulked up lately?”

A sly grin slid across her partner’s face. “Admiring my body, Bugaboo?” 

She rolled her eyes. “The jacket is bunching around the shoulders. This is strictly a technical observation. You’ve gained some muscle.”

“I have been working out a little more lately,” he admitted. “But is the fit really that bad?”

“It should work for today. If you keep this up, though, I’ll have to do some alterations for next year.”

Cat Noir flexed under the jacket. “Aw, you don’t want to see me Hulk my way through it?”

Ladybug shook her head. “Not when it’s my work, I don’t. You can use your own clothes for that.”

The winter festival was nearly ready to begin, so Ladybug put on her own Santa jacket and hat and stepped up next to her ridiculous partner.  Before long, there was a line of children a mile long awaiting gifts, and Paris’s heroes were happy to oblige. They passed out packages and boxes to the children with genuine smiles on their faces, hearts warmed at the connections they made with the citizens of their city. 

Ladybug and Cat Noir were at the center of the park, in front of the statue of themselves. On either side, they were flanked by stands of craft and food vendors from across the city, offering special holiday treats and deals. Ladybug was proud to see her parents operating a stand selling miniature  _ bûche de Noë _ l. The only thing that would make this festival any more perfect would be a light dusting of snow.

“So, any plans for Christmas Eve, My Lady?” Cat asked between children. 

Ladybug laughed. “Asking me on a date, _chaton_? How scandalous. Does your girlfriend know?”

“You know that no matter how many girls are in my life, you always have a special place in my heart, Bugaboo.” 

Ladybug grinned and passed a gift to the next child in line. Their relationship had changed a lot over the years. The days of Cat Noir declaring his undying love for her were long gone. Both of them had ended up dating other people, and after Hawkmoth’s disappearance, they had almost grown distant from one another. However, nothing could keep Ladybug and Cat Noir apart for long. They always remained good friends, no matter what happened. 

“Actually,” Cat continued, a little more quietly this time. “I wanted your advice on a little something I have planned for my girlfriend.”

“Ooooh, do you have one of your big, romantic schemes in the works?” Ladybug nudged him with her elbow. 

Cat Noir grinned conspiratorially. “Something like that.” There was a small break in the crowd in that moment, giving Cat a chance to reach into the pocket of his Santa coat and fish out a small, green box. He tossed it to Ladybug. “I need a second opinion on that.”

Ladybug opened the little box, and barely held in an excited squeal. Inside of the box was a vintage silver ring, a simple white pearl fixed at the center and flanked with a couple of tiny, pear shaped diamonds on either side. It was the perfect mix of simple, elegant, and unique. “You’re proposing?!” 

Cat Noir nodded, quickly shushing her and taking back the ring box to shove into his pocket. “I’m going to do it on Christmas eve.”

“I’m so happy for you!” Ladybug gushed. From what she could piece together, Cat Noir had been dating this girl for several years now, nearly as long as she had been with her boyfriend. “It’s about time you settled down, you mangy stray!”

“But, the ring,” he redirected. “Do you think the ring is alright?”

Ladybug couldn’t contain her joy. She placed a hand on her partner’s shoulder. “It’s beautiful, Cat. Your girlfriend will absolutely love it. It’s perfect.”

He sighed in relief. “Thank goodness. It was my grandmother’s ring. Not her engagement ring, but one my grandfather gave to her. My mother inherited the engagement ring, but it got lost a while back. I wanted to use something special, but I know pearls aren’t exactly traditional…”

“Breaking from tradition is all the rage lately,” Ladybug said, flicking a long ponytail over her shoulder. “And, honestly, the ring isn’t the important thing. It’s the love behind it.”

A soft, almost sentimental smile crossed her partner’s face. It was an expression he didn’t show Ladybug often, but it always tugged at her heartstrings. “Loving her is as natural as breathing. We’ve been friends for years, and before I knew it, she had my heart, too. I want to spend the rest of my life with her.”

Ladybug felt her throat closing up a little bit. “Oh, now you’ve got me all choked up! She has to say yes. If she doesn’t, you can marry my boyfriend and me instead. I’m sure he’ll be okay with it.”

Cat Noir chuckled. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

They passed the rest of the afternoon fairly quickly between gifting and making jokes. Children laughed, parents bought gifts from the vendors, and everyone seemed to be soaking in the holiday cheer. Ladybug and Cat Noir even posed for some pictures for Alya Cesaire to post on the  _ Ladyblog _ .

It really was the perfect day.

* * *

It was well past dark when Adrien stepped foot into the Agreste mansion. He was exhausted and half frozen from his day working the festival with Ladybug, but he wasn’t going to return to his apartment until he took care of one last errand.

“Adrien, this is a surprise,” Nathalie said, rounding the corner into the foyer, her voice holding little more emotion than her standard emotionless tone. 

Adrien grinned, “I came to speak with Father. Is he around? It’s important.”

“I’ll see if he’s available.” 

Adrien rolled his eyes once she turned her back. He probably should have made an appointment, especially when it was about something this important, but he had gotten to be so much more relaxed in his everyday life that he had very nearly forgotten how stiff his father could be. 

Fortunately, his father seemed to have a bit of free time in his schedule that evening. Nathalie led Adrien into the office--not that Adrien didn’t already know the way-- and left the two men to speak.

Adrien greeting his father formally, as he always did lately, and took in his appearance. His father’s hair had always been light, but now it seemed to be more on the grey side than platinum blonde. His face bore a few more fine lines lately, too. It made Adrien pause and wonder when his father had gotten to be so much older. 

“What is it, Adrien?” Gabriel asked. The question should have been grating, but his voice lacked its usual impatient, annoyed tone that Adrien had come to expect growing up with the man. It was like Gabriel had become softer in the past few years, and Adrien still wasn’t sure how to handle it. “Nathalie said you came to discuss something important.”

“Ah,” Adrien said, rubbing the back of his neck, “yeah. I’ve decided I want to ask Marinette to marry me, and I wanted you to be the first to know.”

Gabriel was quiet for a moment, which made Adrien’s chest tighten a bit. Did his father disapprove? Not that it would change his mind, but it would still hurt. 

His father folded his arms behind his back and circled around the computer stand. He came to stand before Adrien, only a few steps away, eyes boring into his son. Just as Adrien braced himself for criticism, the corners of Gabriel’s mouth turned up just slightly. “I’m proud of you, Adrien.”

Adrien swore he was going to absolutely keel over. His father had never said that he was proud of him. Not even after graduating from university with honors. He had begun to suspect that it was impossible to impress that man.

“I like that Dupain-Cheng girl. She is sensible and has a good future as a designer. I would be happy to welcome her to the Agreste family.”

“Well, I’m not sure if she’ll take my last name,” Adrien hedged, having a feeling that she would want to keep her own.

Gabriel waved him off. “She’ll still be a part of this family, last name or not.”

Adrien felt his heart swell with unexpected joy. He hadn’t expected Gabriel to reject Marinette. They had an amicable relationship, after all. And he knew that he respected her as a designer, he just hadn’t expected such a warm, enthusiastic response.

Gabriel turned to return to his computer, probably finalizing some designs, when Adrien was overcome with an urge that he hadn’t felt in many years. 

Without taking the time to think about it, he reached out and embraced his father from behind. “Thank you, Father.”

Gabriel stiffed for a moment, but his stance eventually softened. He gave Adrien’s arms a gentle pat. “Just be sure to bring her for dinner once the engagement is official.”

Adrien nodded. “I will.”

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part 2 of my Secret Santa gift! I hope you enjoy!

Marinette was exhausted from her afternoon as Santa-Bug, and she should have just gone back to her own apartment and crashed for the evening. 

Instead, she found herself on her boyfriend’s doorstep. Maybe it was all of Cat Noir’s talk about proposing and being so romantic, but she was feeling especially needy that night. An evening on her boyfriend’s sofa with a movie and some take out she’d picked up along the way sounded like the perfect romantic evening on a chilly December night. 

Marinette knocked on Adrien’s apartment door and waited, but he was probably still at work. Marinette shrugged and dug into her purse for his spare key before letting herself into the apartment. 

She put her purse down on the small table next to the door and took off her professional-looking heels. 

“Ah,” she sighed, glad to be out of the torture devices.

“Why do you wear shoes like that if they hurt your feet?” Tikki asked, emerging from Marinette’s purse.

“Fashion over pain, Tikki,” Marinette reasoned, rubbing her heel. In all honesty, she didn’t care about the shoes all that much. She had just forgotten to grab her back up flats that morning. But her pride wouldn’t allow her to admit her mistake. 

Her kwami trailing behind her, Marinette took the takeout containers to the kitchen and laid them out in a mini-buffet so that once Adrien got in they could just grab plates and dig in. Marinette shifted her weight from side to side uncomfortably as she tried to get a good photo to text to her boyfriend. 

“Maybe you should rest your feet,” her kwami suggested. “It has been a long day.”

“My feet need a lot more than just some rest,” Marinette murmured, deciding that she would sell the shoes online the first chance she got. Let them torture someone else. “Adrien has a reflexology mat in his room somewhere,” she remembered, putting her phone down on the counter next to the cheap, disposable chopsticks. 

“That stone massage thingy? Doesn’t that hurt your feet more?” 

“No way. It feels awesome on my arches. I just have to find it.”

Marinette went back to the bedroom and began rummaging through Adrien’s desk drawer, but no luck. Her feet were screaming at her to just sit down, but she was determined. It would be worth it. 

“Maybe it’s in the closet?” Tikki suggested. 

Marinette pulled open the closet door and shoved a bunch of clothes out of the way so that she could get to the shelves at the inner corner. “There it is!” The small black mat was on the top shelf of the closet, underneath a brown paper bag. Marinette reached up on her tiptoes, barely brushing against the plastic of the mat. She huffed, blowing her bangs out of her eyes. She was going to get that mat. Marinette jumped once, twice, three times before she got her fingers on the mat and pulled it down with her. Unfortunately, she hadn’t fully thought this plan through, and the brown paper bag came tumbling down with it.

“Eeek!” She shrieked, dropped the mat, and threw her arms over her head, bracing herself before the bag fell on top of her. The bag fell to the ground with a light thud, its contents spilling out on the floor.

“Marinette,” Tikki worried over her charge, “are you alright?”

“Yeah,” Marinette replied, rubbing her head. Thankfully the package hadn’t been hard or heavy. She was more taken aback than anything. “I’m alright--” Marinette bent down to put the contents back in their package when she registered just what she was looking at. “I didn’t know Adrien had a Santa costume.”

She certainly had never seen him wear it, but the thought of her boyfriend wearing the red and white suit made her giggle. He would probably go all out, playing the part of Santa as far over the top as he could get away with, especially if there were children around. It was something Marinette kind of wanted to see. 

Though it was strange that she had never seen this suit before. She’d been staying overnight at his apartment practically since he’d moved away from his father. And if he was particularly busy, she wasn’t opposed to putting his laundry away. Maybe the suit was new? It was very nicely made, and far better than any department store costume she’d seen this year. She’d have to ask him about it when he got home. 

She folded the jacket nicely and put it back in the paper bag. She was just about to toss it back up onto the shelf and hope that it wouldn’t fall back down again when her Kwami caught her attention.

“Marinette, wait!” Tikki said, “You forgot something.” The kwami floated back to Marinette, carrying a small, green, velvet box with her. “This fell out of the pocket!”

“Oh, thanks, Tikki.” She took the box from her kwami, and went to put it in the bag with the suit, when she was struck with a feeling of familiarity. 

It was a jewelry box, but not an ordinary one. It was a small, forest green, velvet ring box, one she had sworn she had seen before.

One she could almost swear she’d held before.

Weren’t ring boxes usually black? It wasn’t often that Marinette came across a nice box like this, without even a brand name embossed on the lid. Seeing a box like this again was too much of a coincidence to be chance. 

She glanced at her kwami, knowing that she should really just put the ring back into the bag and shove the niggling little suspicion back into the recesses of her mind and move on with her day. 

But if she was right about this, it was only a matter of time before it resurfaced. 

But, honestly, it was probably just a coincidence, right? Really what were the chances? It was ridiculous to think, really, that he could possibly…

Self control waning, Marinette couldn’t resist opening the box.

Nestled between the folds of a white satin pillow was a delicately crafted silver ring with two tiny pear shaped diamonds flanking a single pearl.

It was a beautifully simple design, but it was unique. So unique, in fact, that Marinette was sure she had only seen a ring like it once before in her life, and it had been that very morning.

The room began to spin around her with the implications of her discovery. 

Adrien, her boyfriend of five years and her friend of ten, was Cat Noir. Her long time partner, with whom she had fought and defeated countless supervillains before finally taking down Hawkmoth once and for all, was Adrien Agreste.

Marinette’s knees gave out and she landed right on her butt, dropping the ring box, the plastic reflexology mat forgotten on the floor of the closet. She shoved the ring into the paper back, pushed the pile into the closet, and slammed the door shut before flopping back on the floor. 

Why did she have to be so nosey? 

* * *

 

Somehow, Marinette got herself together by the time Adrien got home. She was quite proud of herself for how normally she was acting around him, as if she hadn’t had one of the biggest revelations of her life. She just pushed the new, unsettling information into the back of her mind and enjoyed takeout with her boyfriend in front of a movie. 

She knew Tikki was worried about her, but she would deal with that later. For now, she just wanted to act like everything was normal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Find me on Tumblr! CrypticCravings.tumblr.com


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Six months late! Christmas eve in June, but this is finally finished!

Marinette wasn’t able to fully process her discovery until she was finally alone the next day. She’d passed the last twelve hours as if she were watching a scene in a movie instead of actually experiencing it. 

Looking back on the past ten years, there were plenty of signs. Adrien disappeared with thinly veiled excuses about as often as she did, and now she understood why. Not that she had questioned it much in the past. She had been too focused on getting away herself to think about what he was doing. And Cat Noir had shown signs, too. The feather allergy should have been the first indication, but lots of people had allergies! Why should she question that? 

By that afternoon, she was wondering how she could have been so blind. It seemed so obvious. 

Now that she thought about it, with Hawkmoth “defeated”--that’s what they were saying, at least, since he had been so silent for the past few years-- they didn’t have any real reason to hide their identities from one another. Not anymore. Though neither one had brought it up to each other in several years. 

Maybe it was time to do so. 

* * *

Adrien was ecstatic. The date was set. Christmas eve, he would make Marinette a nice, romantic dinner, then they would browse through the Christmas Market at the base of the Eiffel Tower. He would wait until the sun was setting, and he would get down on one knee and ask her to marry him. Then, they would return to his apartment where they would have dessert with some of their friends and family to celebrate. It was a simple plan. Maybe a little bit cliche, but he stood by it. After all, the only thing he cared about was spending his life with this lovely lady.

Now, all that's left was to wait. 

* * *

She was being weird. She knew she was being weird, but she couldn’t stop. The only contact she’d had with Adrien/Cat Noir in the last 24 hours since her discovery had been through a couple of quick text messages between his ever busy schedule. But it was patrol night, and she’d been forced to face him without the buffer of a screen between them. For some reason, the mask of composure she’d had the day before with Adrien left her. Something about the knowledge that it was her boyfriend, her supermodel, amazingly attractive, pun loving, ever supportive boyfriend poured into that leather cat suit made her brain short circuit. And she was having a hard time convincing herself that this was the first time she’d noticed how much she enjoyed looking at him in it.

She was sure he noticed how wildly she swung between tense silence and near incoherent babbling. Fortunately enough, even Cat Noir was used to her occasional strange moods and didn’t pry, trusting her to come to him when the time was right. It hadn’t always been that way. When they were younger, he had poked and prodded at her over every little thing. But at some point, he began to realize that the easiest way to get her to open up to him was to give her some space to sort things out on her own first, even if he really wanted to know. 

Guilt gnawed at her. She wanted to tell him, she realized, that she had figured him out. She hadn’t been looking, but she’d found him anyway. Keeping this knowledge behind his back felt like a violation.

Unfortunately, she was never good at finding the right moments for revelations like these. They patrolled for an hour and a half, and the entire time, she couldn’t bring herself to broach the subject of their identities. So, she sent him off with a halfhearted, unenthused “see ya later” before swinging off to her own apartment for a late night stress snack and another fitful night’s sleep.

* * *

Work kept Marinette blessedly busy the next day. She wasn’t sure if she could take much more of her brain turning over itself. Between the need to confess, the now obvious signs that she kept going over and over in her mind that her boyfriend was her partner all along, and the now growing excitement at that discovery, she was getting emotional whiplash. But, the office would be closed for the next few days for the holiday, and Marinette had quite a bit of work to get done before she locked up her desk for the break.

She was midway through making some changes that a senior designer marked on her sketches when her text tone buzzed on her phone. Tikki brought the device across the room so that Marinette barely had to put down her pencil to check the message. 

**Adrien: Date night. 1630 tomorrow. Don’t forget!**

**Adrien: And leave your design book at the office this time.**

Marinette snorted. As if she would actually forget about their Christmas Eve date. Most families would be spending the evening together and having a nice, formal dinner. Adrien and his father hadn’t had such a tradition in years, and Marinette’s family opted to just celebrate on Christmas day when they could convince her grandparents to come together. So, for the past four Christmases, ever since they started university, Marinette and Adrien had spent the holiday-eve together.

And this year’s date would be the perfect setting for her to confess her recent discovery. 

* * *

Adrien’s heart was officially pounding right out of his chest.

Dinner had been spectacular, of course. The restaurant he’d selected was a small, newly opened bistro within a short walk of the Eiffel Tower. They’d had roasted capon, greens, and potatoes that were all even better than his father’s private chefs had ever made, leaving the two of them stuffed. It hadn’t taken much to steer Marinette away from the dessert menu. He couldn’t very well tell her that her parents were at his apartment putting the finishing touches on their celebration sweets. 

Fortunately, she mentioned a craving for mulled wine, allowing Adrien the perfect segue into the Christmas market. 

It was already dark by the time they arrived at the base of the tower, and it was predictably busy, which did put a small damper on the idyllic, romantic picture Adrien had painted in his mind, but his plans were far from ruined. How could they be when his beautiful girlfriend looked so precious all bundled up, blowing on her steaming mug of wine?

Her hair was pulled back into low twin tails, a style he hadn’t seen her wear in several years. It reminded him of their high school years. Her little, upturned nose was rosy from the chill, and her delicate fingers clutched the souvenir mug tightly to leech its warmth. 

In a few minutes, she was going to be his  _ fiancée _ . If she said yes, that is. Plagg, Nino, Alya, and her parents had repeatedly assured him that she would say yes, would never even consider saying no. Even he knew his fears were baseless, but he couldn’t help the trill of anxiety that rang through him. 

He took a deep breath, steadying himself, before leading Marinette a little bit away from the packed crowds of the Christmas Market. They walked quietly down the  _ Champs de Mars _ , away from the tower, until it stood brightly over them. The crowd around them thinned out to the point that they had some measure of privacy. 

The little velvet box was heavy in his pocket. 

As the two of them approached an unoccupied bench, Adrien glanced up at the starless night sky, then to his girlfriend’s pink cheeks. 

Her clear blue eyes met his, the corners crinkling with the brightness of her smile, and he knew more than ever that he wanted to spend his life with this woman. That thought pushed past all remaining anxiety that muddled his brain.

Without another moment of hesitation, Adrien placed his hands over Marinette’s where she clutched the mug of wine. Her eyes widened and the chilled flush of her cheeks deepened. Adrien gave her a reassuring smile as he took the mug from her hands and placed it on the bench next to them. He kept one hand on her’s, a serene feeling he hadn’t expected filling his very soul as he took a deep breath and reached into his jacket pocket. 

“Marinette, the last five years with you have been some of the best of my life,” Adrien began, the words he’d been rehearsing in front of his mirror for days tumbling out of him. He pulled the small, green box out of his pocket and braced himself to get down on one knee. 

Marinette’s wide eyes locked onto that little box. He heard her breath catch, felt the way her fingers tightened around his. The redness in her cheeks rose even more. 

“They’ve been the best in my entire life, and that’s why I have something very important to ask you.” But just as Adrien began to sink to his knee--

“I know your secret,” Marinette exclaimed.

Well that was...not even remotely what he was expecting her to say. Adrien nearly toppled over as his balance faltered. Her firm grip on his hand kept him upright and he returned to full height. His brows knit together.

He opened his mouth to ask what she was talking about when she cut him off again, her voice much quieter this time,but still carrying that same heat as before. “I know that you’re Cat Noir.”

His eyes widened, and his heart stopped dead in his chest. Panic tried to rise, but at the moment he was too dumbfounded to even get that far. “I--” On impulse, he tried to come up with some kind of excuse. He was suddenly fourteen again, trying to explain his tardiness to a stern physics teacher.  _ Say something, idiot!  _

But Marinette continued. “It’s not like you’re bad at hiding it or anything. You’re actually really good at keeping it a secret. And it’s not your fault that I know, either! I don’t want you to feel like you’ve done anything wrong, but I had to tell you because it isn’t fair that I know, and you didn’t know that I know, and you don’t know about me either. That would be so messed up, right?” She let out a strangled laugh and slapped her free hand against her forehead. “I’m rambling.” She took a deep breath to steady herself. 

Adrien waited, not wanting to interrupt, and afraid to even breathe.

“I know you’re Cat Noir because I’m Ladybug.” Marinette tucked one of her ponytails behind her ear, revealing the same reddish-black earrings she’s worn the entire time he’s known her.

Earrings, he suddenly realized, that looked a lot like what Ladybug’s miraculous would look like in their dormant state.

Adrien’s eyes brightened as he took the woman in front of him in. Long, low pigtails that had once been Marinette’s signature look. That continued to be a part of Ladybug’s. 

Deep, blue eyes that narrowed when she was lost in thought, and the little upturned nose that scrunched up when she laughed. 

It was like a grimy film was suddenly washed clean and he could see Marinette for the first time. And what he saw was His Lady.

Marinette fidgeted under his gaze, but did not let go of his hand. 

Adrien didn’t let go, either.

Instead, with the little green box still in his grasp, he clutched her hand with both of his. He was sure any outsider would think him absolutely manic with how broadly he was grinning, but he didn’t care. “Well,” he remarked, unable to stifle the giddiness in his voice, “I guess the cat’s out of the bag.”

Marinette sputtered at the pun, but he ignored her, continuing, “And since I already told Ladybug the rest of my secrets, I’m sure you already know what I was going to ask you.”

“Ask me?” She blinked at him, a look of confusion crossing her face. 

“That big, important question that I’ve been planning on asking my girlfriend. On Christmas Eve.” All anxiety about popping the question disappeared the moment she told him who she was. Whether they knew it or not, Ladybug and Cat Noir had always been a matching pair. He pulled her close to him and wrapped his arm around her waist. He flipped the lid of the ring box open and presented it to her for what he realized was the second time.

Marinette suddenly remembered the circumstances of her discovering his identity in the first place. She had been so wrapped up in figuring out how she was going to tell him she knew that she completely forgot that Cat Noir had been planning on proposing to his girlfriend on Christmas Eve. And if Cat Noir was Adrien, that made  _ her  _ Cat Noir’s girlfriend, which meant….

Marinette swallowed, her heart now racing for a totally new reason.

“So, Ladybug,” Adrien said, his feline grin making her brain short circuit, “The past ten years with you have been the absolute greatest in my life. Now that I know our history together goes so much deeper than friendship and romance, I know that there is no way I can live without you by my side. You are the bravest, smartest, strongest, most beautiful woman in the world. All I want is to build a life with you. A family. Marinette, My Lady, will you do this pitiful stray the honor of marrying me?”

Marinette’s eyes burned. As if he even had to ask. Throat tight, she finally managed to speak again. “Yes.”

At her breathless response, Adrien’s heart soared with joy. He closed the distance between them, tightening their embrace, and sealed the engagement with a kiss. He couldn’t for the life of him figure out what he had done to be so lucky as to marry the one true love of his life.

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on Tumblr! Crypticcravings.tumblr.com


End file.
